True, the last Monday of May is a day off and the unofficial start of summer, but Key West’s military groups pause every year to recall the reason behind the holiday with meaningful events to honor the men and women who died while serving in the U.S. military.
The Navy League hosted its annual ceremony at the USS Maine Memorial in the Key West Cemetery. Later that morning, a ceremonial laying of the wreaths took place at the Veterans Memorial Garden at Bayview Park. Local veterans and military leaders from the Navy and Coast Guard spoke at each event, reflecting on the sacrifices made by American servicemen and women.
Memorial Day was originally known as Decoration Day, according to history.com. It originated in the years following the Civil War, which ended in the spring of 1865 and claimed more lives than any other conflict in U.S. history. The war brought the establishment of the country’s first national cemeteries. By the late 1860s, Americans in various towns and cities had begun holding springtime tributes to fallen soldiers, decorating their graves with flowers and reciting prayers. Memorial Day became an official federal holiday in 1971.
